


The tale of Izumi Iori's first love

by amamiya_toki



Category: IDOLiSH7 (Video Game)
Genre: Both pairs of siblings as children, Crossdressing, M/M, Non-Canonical Backstory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-02
Updated: 2016-10-02
Packaged: 2018-08-19 01:57:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8184686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amamiya_toki/pseuds/amamiya_toki
Summary: When Iori was young, he once got lost during a family trip to the beach. Fortunately, a child slightly older than him decides to lend a hand, and that child is...?





	

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place in the month of August. Tenn and Riku's birthdays have passed, and Iori is still five and not six because his birthday is in January. Same for Mitsuki, whose birthday is yet to pass (for those who don't know, in the Japanese schooling system the oldest child is born in April and youngest in March).
> 
> This also plays on the idea that some children who are sickly or with life-threatening diseases (especially young boys) are made to crossdress. Those who had read Abe Miyuki's Hakkenden: Eight Dogs of the East or Kazuki Rai's Hatsukoi may know this. I'm not too sure where the origins of that came from, though.
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Idolish7, its characters, and its franchise.
> 
> Special mentions to NezuDango, whose works I always indulge in. I've been wanting to write both genderbended and/or crossdressed i7 fics for a while. Also, to Mint who has been feeding me with IoRiku on an occasional basis. And last but most importantly, Kits-nee who pushed me to start writing this.

The island country of Japan is known for their sweltering summers. Many varieties of cold treats and drinks would available for purchase, at modern cafes as well as traditional shops selling traditional confections. However, there is no better way to beat the heat than spending a fun day out in the sun at the beach with family or friends.

As part of family tradition the owners of "fonte chocolat", one of Tokyo's most popular cake shops, would close their shop for a day to bring their beloved sons to the beach for a well-deserved family vacation. It was something the entire family looked forward to every year, especially the eldest son.

However, this year the beach was more crowded than usual, despite being on a weekday. Fortunately, the Izumi family managed to find a good spot to settle down at.

"Iori! Make sure you put on lots of sunscreen!" The older of the brothers, Mitsuki, wore a smile brighter than the sun's as he held his younger brother in his arms, facing the wide blue ocean in front of them. "It's gonna hurt lots if you get burned! Do you want Big Brother to help you?"

The younger of the brothers, five-year-old Iori, nodded in reply. Unlike the Mitsuki he was a shy child who spoke little and in a soft voice, "I'll help Big Brother, too."

"Thanks, Iori!" He gave his beloved little brother a tight squeeze and nuzzled their cheeks together. "I'll get the bottle from mum so wait for me, okay?"

With the sunscreen applied to protect them from the harsh rays of the sun, it was time for the boys to play. Their father had inflated their favourite beach ball for them to play with, along with all other inflatables including little Iori's swimming ring. When he was done, he accompanied his sons towards the edge of the beach for some fun in the water. Their mother opted to stay under the shade of the large parasol they had rented from the beach house nearby, reading a novel she had bought recently.

When the sun had risen to the highest point in the sky, it was time to take a break for lunch. Those who went into the water got themselves dry with the towels they had brought along. Afterwards, both parents went to buy food from the stands nearby, leaving their nine-year-old to look after the younger child.

It was around this time when a chilly gust of wind blew past, causing the little one to sneeze.

"Are you alright, Iori? We'd better have you put on your T-shirt, just in case." Mitsuki reached for their mother's duffel bag and opened the zip to search for the garment, but frowned when he did not see it. "Strange, it should be in here..."

As the breeze picked up once more, this time it was the older brother's turn to sneeze.

"Well, looks like I'd better put on mine as well." He commented with a small chuckle as he continued to rummage through the bag, and finally found what he was looking for. "Here it is! Alright, arms up in the air... Iori?"

However, when he turned around, the child who was sitting next to him less than a minute ago was nowhere in sight.

"Oh no... What should I do?"

**xxx**

"Say, is that kid lost?"

"Leave him be. His parents are probably nearby."

"But the poor dear seems to be looking for someone and looks like he's about to cry. Maybe we should help him."

In the meantime, little Iori was now standing in the midst of a crowd of strangers. In his small hands, he held his beach ball that had been carried by the wind, which he had chased after when it rolled away. However, he had chased it far enough to not know where he was, or how to return to where his older brother was.

As it was the first time he had been alone in an unfamiliar place, he was scared and anxious.

"Big Brother..." He muttered as he tried to hold in his tears, holding the ball closer to his small body as he hoped that his older brother would come for him, just as he always would.

However, there was no sign of him appearing from the sea of people. With the sky above getting darker by the minute, it made the situation all the more frightening for the poor child.

Just as he was about to let out a cry, he felt a warm hand on his shoulder. "Say, are you lost?"

Turning around to see who had spoken to him, Iori came face-to-face with a girl who seemed to be around his age. She wore a light yellow sundress with her short red hair tied into two little bunches, one on each side of her head with matching gold bobbles adorning them. Her smile was bright and sunny, just like his older brother's. Just by looking at her, all the uncertainty and worry he had seemed to have disappeared.

"You are lost, aren't you?" She repeated her question just in case he had not heard her the first time and received a nod in response. "What's your name?"

"I'm..."

Iori was about to tell her his name, but he was interrupted when he noticed a boy approaching them.

"Riku!" He seemed angry as he marched over, which made Iori hide behind the girl instinctively in fear. He was not any much taller or older than the girl, but his presence was frightening to the smaller child. "I was looking for you! Why did you run off without telling me? I told you not to go off on your own, didn't I?"

"Ah, Tenn-nii!" Her already big smile grew wider, or so it seemed to the boy. "I'm feeling good and well today, so there's no need for Tenn-nii to worry so much."

"That's not the point. Anyone would worry if the person whom they thought was following behind them suddenly disappeared without notice." The boy named Tenn deadpanned sarcastically, folding his arms across his chest. "We're both in elementary school already, so get your act together."

"I'm sorry." The girl gave an apologetic glance, which was accepted when he unfolded his arms to pat her hair. "Anyway, Tenn-nii! Look here!"

"Hmm?" It was only at that moment that he noticed Iori, who visibly shrank under his unnerving gaze. "Who's this little shrimp?"

"He got lost and I picked him up!"

"Picked up..." The term was repeated with a sigh. "Riku, he's not a cat, you know."

"I do! I'm sensitive to animal fur, after all."

"What I meant is, don't talk about him as if you're talking about an animal."

"Huh?" The girl cocked her head to the side, not comprehending what her brother had meant by that. "But I did find him, didn't I? In that case, I'm right to say I picked him up?"

"Oh, never mind. You tend to be a real airhead sometimes, you know?" The boy with light pink hair turned his attention from his sister to the younger boy. "Hey, you. Where did you come from?"

"Ah, I…" Iori found it hard to look up at him, especially since he was staring down at him like a vulture.

"Tenn-nii, stop that! You're scaring him!" The girl reprimanded her brother, standing between the two boys as if she was protecting the younger. "Be nicer to him!"

"I am being nice," Tenn frowned, confused as he was not aware of what he had done wrong. "I'm trying to help him, aren't I?"

"I know you are, but you were looking pretty scary." She turned her attention back to the child, ignoring her brother who was even more confused now. "Is it okay if we help you find your mama and papa? Ah, I haven't introduced myself properly, but my name's Riku. This here is my older twin brother, Tenn-nii. There are times when he looks a bit nasty, but he's actually very kind and gentle person. Could you tell me your name?"

"Iori. My name is, Iori. I have a big brother too."

"Is that so? Well, be better find him soon. I'm sure he's looking for you, too... ah."

Just as she offered her hand to the child, she felt a heavy drop of water on her cheek. It had started to rain, and many people were quickly moving to the sheltered areas for cover. The three children were led by Tenn to a row of shops nearby, where they waited under the awning for the rain to pass.

As it was chilly, Iori had been lent Tenn's parka to wear, which the older boy insisted was so that he won't catch a cold. It was accepted with thanks.

"Do you remember which way you came from?"

Iori shook his head at the older boy's question.

"How did you get lost, then?" It was the girl's turn to ask.

"I was following this." He held the beach ball just a little higher to emphasise its presence, "The wind blew and it rolled away. When I caught it, I couldn't see my big brother anywhere."

"Do you know how far you may have gone?"

Again, the question was replied with the shake of his head.

Tenn then let out a sigh. "This isn't going to help. This is a pretty big beach compared to the one dad brought us to last year..."

"... And it's our first time here so we don't really know our way around." Riku continued Tenn's sentence before he could finish it. "There must be a place where we can ask an adult for help... how about we bring him back to the shop papa's helping out at?"

"It's just a small stall; I don't think many people go by there. How about the Lost Children's corner instead? There should be one on this beach, given its size."

"Ah! Why didn't I think about that? Tenn-nii, you're so smart!" Riku clapped her hands in cheer. "Isn't that great, Iori-kun? We can find someone who can help you find your big brother!"

Looking up at her smiling face made him smile too, as he finally nodded his head. "Un!"

When the rain stopped, the twins asked a passing adult for the information they needed. Once they had obtained it, Riku took Iori by the hand as the both of them accompanied him to the centre, where Tenn explained the situation to the person in charge. A public announcement was made, and as they waited together for the younger boy's parents she continued to hold his hand.

A short while later, someone could be heard calling the boy's name from a distance.

"...ri! Iori!"

"!!" The child nearly jumped at the sound of the familiar voice. "Big Brother!"

From the bench he was sitting on, he got onto his feet, running towards the direction of the orange haired boy who took him into his arms.

"We were all worried, you silly child! Thank goodness you're alright! Promise me you'll never, ever disappear like that again!"

"I sorry, Big Brother… I promise I won't do this again."

"Hey now, don't cry like that. I'm glad that you're safe and sound."

"Erm," The girl made a sound, not sure if it was right to interrupt the moment, as she approached the nine-year-old. "Here."

"Our beach ball?"

"It got carried away by the wind and he followed it. That was how he got separated and lost. My little sister found him alone so she decided to help him." Tenn explained, providing a short summary of events. "He was very brave and didn't cry."

"I see. Thanks for helping him! Ah, this parka is yours too, I presume?"

"Yes."

"Ah! We'll return it right away!" Mitsuki put Iori down so the youngest of the children could remove the garment. He also took the beach ball from the red-haired girl, giving her his thanks.

"Thank you for lending it to me." Iori expressed his gratitude as he handed the hooded jacket back to the pink haired boy.

"It's no problem at all. Although, we should be returning soon, before our parents get worried."

"Thanks for keeping him company, and again, for helping him."

"It's really no problem at all; we're just glad he could find his brother." The girl smiled at the child, petting his hair lightly. "Bye bye, Iori-kun."

"Bye bye."

The child waved good-bye to the two, his gaze fixed on the girl. He looked as if he wanted to say something, and only overcame his hesitation after they turned to leave. "S-Say!"

The twins turned their heads back to look at the boy. It took a bit of courage to speak while he was being stared at but he managed to muster it in order to convey, in his own words, what he wanted to say to the girl. "Could… Could we meet again?"

"Of course!"

**\- in the present… -**

"Hoh. That's a pretty nice story."

"To think our dear Ichi had a sweetheart at such a young age… Big Brother is proud of you."

"Don't put it that way!" Iori frowned at the two half-drunks, Gaku and Yamato. "That is a very precious memory to me, you know!"

"Despite saying that, Iori doesn't remember the name of that girl at all."

"Ehh? Really?"

"Tamaki-kun, don't talk when you're eating." Sougo chided the boy, who ignored him to continue savouring his pudding. "What do you mean by that he cannot remember the girl? Didn't you manage to meet her again?"

"Well, the thing was, we did try to look for her the next year when we went back to the beach. But when we asked around, we learnt that her family only came to that beach once that year to help one of the store owners who was injured that year. It seems that she never returned there. And since we didn't ask where they were from, or what their family name was, we couldn't find them."

"OH. That is so sad. Poor Iori… Come! Let me comfort you! GIVE ME A HUG!!"

"Please stop that, Rokuya-san! It's unsightly! Get off me!"

"Oh, you don't have to be so shy, Iori. COME ON, MY BROTHER!"

"Hey, let me join in too!"

"Not you too, Big Brother! Don't tell me you're already drunk?"

"What's the matter, Tenn, Riku-kun? The both of you have a strange look on your faces…"

"It's nothing." The twins replied to Ryuu's question simultaneously, both wearing similar expressions that can be described as a cross between awkwardness and dread.

_We can't tell him the truth, absolutely not!_

That was what they thought to themselves as they sipped on their glasses of juice silently while watching Iori, the person in question, get buried in tight hugs from half of his other group members.

Well, it would only be a matter of time when he finds out.

**\- END -**

**Author's Note:**

> I sincerely apologise to those who have been waiting for my ongoing stories to be updated; I could say that I'm busy with job hunting and such since I've graduated from University, but I have also been a bit lazy recently. Whoopsies.
> 
> But I haven't given up on them! I also come up with too many ideas for my own good, so I should at least sort those out.
> 
> Until next time!
> 
> \-- Toki


End file.
